How many of us hate doing the heel prick or neonatal blood spot test (Guthrie test)? http://newbornbloodspot.screening.nhs.uk/publicI know each tine I do it, specially when I do this after a home birth, I feel like crap. Bleeding someones precious baby is just not fun, but I know it is a necessary evil so I apologies deeply and get on with the job. With anxious parents peering at me as I stab and take precious drops of blood from their perfect babies, I just feel so akward.

I remember watching my children have their heels pricked, It was not a pleasant experience, but I did it because I wanted to make sure they did not have some ominous disease, which is why we all do it. I felt for the poor midwife and knew she was only doing her job, but that did not make it easier to see my babes bleeding, if only drops and crying. Granted not all babies cry or are bothered at all, but some babies don’t bleed as well as others and more than one stab could be needed. All in all, its just not nice, but what if there was an alternative?

I have just come across this information on line. I am unsure if it is a real alternative so I have emailed a friend who is a pediatric doctor to ask his opinion. It is about doing the PKU with cord blood. This is the site,http://www.motherspirit.net/articles/pregnancy/newborn.html

I know with an NHS needing cash as well as other social health care systems, this may prove too costly, if at all possible, but parents should have a choice. My practice is private, so our clients pay us for our care and if this proved to be a viable option, I am sure many parents would opt for this method as opposed to the lancet heel prick test. But until then, does any one know of the best lancets to buy, some are really crap and necessitate the midwife to stab more than once to get a good sample. If so, please let me know.